THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: THREE BEST WAYS TO GET LEAN
The Wall Street Journal’s Sarah E. Needleman suggests three easy ways to save some money: consolidate your workspace, shop smarter, and rework your work force. Will any of these steps help you minimize costs?
WSJ Excerpt:
Just about every small business can use a little extra cash flow these days.
Nancy F. Koehn, an entrepreneurial historian at the Harvard Business School, says owners commonly look to boost their bottom line by laying off staff. But this isn’t always a wise a strategy because it can mean losing out on opportunities to service new customers, she warns.
“If demand picks up, you can’t exploit it because you don’t have the resources,” says Ms. Koehn. “It’s a really big risk.” (For more on the pros and cons of trimming headcount, see “Entrepreneurs Prefer to Keep Staffs Lean.”)
The good news is that layoffs aren’t a business owner’s only option for saving. Here are three best ways to lower operating expenses…